(1) Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of test instrumentation and in particular to testing of weapons interface systems for Tomahawk nuclear cruise missiles.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
During development of the AN/BSY-1 Submarine Combat System (SCS) and, in particular, during the detailed interface testing which is a part of the final certification testing, the Department of Energy determined that the W80 nuclear warhead-to-submarine combat system interface was invalid. At this late stage of development, the Submarine Combat System could not correctly pre-arm and safe the nuclear weapon. As a result, a costly and time consuming redesign was necessary. In this particular instance, the cost to the U.S. Navy for correction of a problem discovered so late in the development cycle was approximately $1.5 million. This cost would have been greatly reduced if the Navy had a capability to verify weapons interface signal earlier in the development life cycle. Over the lifetime of a project, the costs of correcting problems increases exponentially as development progresses and a larger percentage of components become fixed or relied upon by other parts of the system. A system is needed which provides verification of SCS signals at an early stage of development; especially those signals associated with nuclear warheads where redesign efforts are particularly costly. Additionally, in order to perform tests at early development stages, it is necessary to have a portable or transportable test system which can be moved to various development sites. In order to fully capture the data provided by a modern weapons interface, the system must be fast, reliable and automated. The system must also provide permanent storage of test results for documentation purposes.